


They think what!?

by Nami



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Humour, M/M, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-05
Updated: 2018-02-05
Packaged: 2019-03-13 23:17:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,035
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13581009
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nami/pseuds/Nami
Summary: Aftermath of the fight with Melusine or why it was chocobros who received "O Partner, My Partner" quest.





	They think what!?

**Author's Note:**

> Beated by catgirl1986 @ tumblr
> 
> Yesterday, I talked on my tumblr about why Chocobros were fighting Melusine and thus this fic was born. I hope you will like it! Comments are highly appreciated ^^

**They think what!?**

 

Noctis was used to people staring at him - it was a part of being a prince. He mastered the skill of ignoring people’s eyes on him years ago, but today the intensity of it was too much to brush it off. He didn’t remember if it had been that bad yesterday, when he and his friends rolled into Meldacio to report back about killing Melusine before going straight to bed. Truth be told Noctis didn’t remember much from yesterday other than Gladio’s hand on his shoulder supporting him.

He and Gladio were sitting in some chairs near the shop, enjoying their day off. Ignis stayed in the camper, doing his magic with ingredients for their dinner (as Prompto liked to call it), Prompto went to tend their chocobos, and the two of them had decided to spend the morning sipping cold soda while reading a book (Gladio) or playing _King’s Knight_ (Noctis). Still, it was hard to focus on the game when almost every person passing their table was looking at them with curiosity. Noctis spotted a group of hunters pointing at them from the other side of the street. They weren’t looking as if they were laughing at them though.

Maybe the fight with Melusine simply made them famous? It had been a hard fight after all and many hunters before them had fallen.

Suddenly, two female hunters came to their table. Noctis switched the phone off – it was hard to focus on the game anyway – and Gladio put down his book, smiling charmingly at the hunters.

“Can we help you?” he asked, leaning back in the chair.

“Is it true that you killed Melusine?” asked one of them, a short blonde girl with glasses and a big tattoo of a floral pattern going from her shoulder to her throat. Noctis winced at the thought of how much that must of hurt. The other hunter looked like she was her siblings, with similar piercing green eyes. Her hair was brown though. “You and two other guys?”

“Yeah, it was a hard fight but we fought worse monsters,” Gladio answered with a cheeky smile.

Noctis looked at him with bewilderment. For him Melusine _had been_ the worst monster he had ever fought. He almost opened his mouth to say so but then his gaze fell onto the scar on Gladio’s face. Maybe for Gladio it wasn’t the worst fight in his life.

“And you didn’t get affected by her?” the other girl asked, looking at Noctis. For some reason she sounded sad. Did she lose someone to that monster?

“Well, no, we didn’t.” Noctis straightened in his chair practically hearing Ignis’ voice telling him to keep good posture when talking with ladies. To his surprise both hunters giggled. “... Is something wrong?”

“No, no, I just... ah, lost a bet,” the blonde one answered, her cheeks going red.

Noctis looked at Gladio with raised eyebrows. Gladio shrugged, clearly as confused. Behind him, Noctis saw a group of hunters observing them. The blond girl waved at them, pointing her thumb down. A few of those hunters shook their heads, their expressions grim.

Gladio stood up, putting his palms on the table.

“You know, either you tell us what is going on or leave us alone.” Gladio turned slightly to glance at the hunters behind him. Noctis wasn’t the only one to notice them then.

Before either of the girls could speak, Prompto jogged to them, still limping slightly from yesterday’s events. Noctis made a mental note to give him a potion when they go back to the camper. He slowed down seeing that Noctis and Gladio weren’t alone.

“Um, hello?” Prompto stood by their table, looking between the hunters and his friends. He was favouring his left leg, Noctis noted. Yep, Prompto was getting a potion.

Both women looked at Prompto all over, making him squirm under their gaze. They didn’t look very happy.

“You know, you should take better care of him,” the brown-haired woman spoke again looking at Gladio and Noctis with distaste.

“Um, what?” Prompto laughed nervously. “I’m good… we’re good! We’re friends, you know?”

The blonde one’s lips twitched as she fought a smile.

“ _Friends_ , right,” she snorted and a horrific realization started to unfold in Noctis’ mind.

“Tell me...” he started slowly, wondering if he was right or not, “why did you ask if Melusine affected us?”

* * *

 

Ignis enjoyed his morning. Prompto, Noctis and Gladio left him right after breakfast, claiming that they were going to rest. He could see Noctis and Gladio sitting at the table near the shop at the other side of the street through the window and he knew that Prompto went to see how were their chocobos were after yesterday’s hunt. Meldacio was fairly safe so there was no harm in them spending some time alone. Astrals above knew that they needed it. They cared for each other deeply but spending too much time in only their own company unfortunately led to arguments and unnecessary tension.

As for him, Ignis decided to check the newest recipe with Vesper Gar’s fillets. It was a fairly simple recipe but Ignis couldn’t get the taste of the sauce right. No reason to fret over it too much though; there was still some time before dinner to perfect it.

Just when Ignis pondered if he should use more pepper this time, the door to the camper opened and a clearly annoyed Noctis walked it, announcing loudly:

“Ignis, we’re leaving.” Without even looking at Ignis, Noctis went to the bed, throw his bag on it from the Armiger and started to pack up his things.

It was the first time Noctis willingly packed up his bag. Ignis needed a moment. He was sure he wasn’t hallucinating but maybe there were some properties of Vesper Gar’s meat he wasn’t aware of.

“Can I ask why, Noctis?” Ignis put down the knife and reached for the towel to dry his hands. “As I recall you insisted on staying in Meldacio for a few days.”

“I changed my mind.” Noctis stopped packing. He was staring angrily at the bag as if it offended him personally.

His cheeks were red but it didn’t look like only from anger, Ignis noticed with surprise. Noctis was avoiding looking straight at him and that was something he did only when he was embarrassed.

“There you are, princess.” Gladio’s voice boomed from the entrance. “Thought you would run here.”

Ignis turned to Gladio, worried.

“Run? Did something happen?” Gladio didn’t look injured nor did Noctis but they could hear about incoming MTs. “And where is Prompto?”

At that Gladio laughed, supporting himself against the doorframe while Noctis groaned loudly and hid his face in his hands.

All right, clearly something was wrong but not the wrong kind of wrong. At least not life-threatening kind of wrong. Still, something did greatly upset Noctis and Ignis had to know what it was.

“Prompto went for ice-cream with some hunters,” Gladio explained. He squeezed behind Ignis to sit on the bed. He poked Noctis’ leg. “You didn’t tell Iggy anything, princess?”

“I didn’t have time,” Noctis mumbled. He put his hands down and looked at Ignis, still flushed red. “The hunters know about us.”

Ignis’s eyebrows furrowed. He lowered his voice to a whisper.

“They know you’re the king, your Majesty?”

That wouldn’t be too good. Hunters don’t love Niflheim but many of them did not love Lucis either. They would have to leave Meldacio, quickly.

“No, not that.” Noctis sat next to Gladio, kicking his Shield’s calf in the process. Gladio didn’t even budge. “They know we,” Noctis waved between the three of them, “are together.”

That... that was surprising.

“Did any of you say something?” Ignis asked, resisting the urge to pinch the bridge of his nose.

As much as Ignis loathed it, their relationship had to stay a secret. Otherwise it would destroy Noctis’ political position.

“No. It’s because of our last hunt,” Noctis explained.

His cheeks, if that was even possible, became more red. His lips were forming a pout Ignis always had a hard time resisting kissing however it wasn’t a time to focus on that.

“Our last hunt?” Ignis repeated. “I admit we didn’t come back here in the best shape but none of us said anything about our relationship. We collected our money and went to sleep.”

Noctis was quiet, seemingly focused on brushing dust from his sleeves. He was avoiding looking at Ignis and Gladio. He licked his lips but no words came out.

“What the princess is trying to say,” Gladio started, coming to Noctis’ rescue. He reached with his hand to mess Noctis’ hair but he brushed it away without any strength behind it, “is that Melusine _seduced_ her victims but not us.”

Ignis’ eyes widened in realization and Gladio grinned.

“Everyone in Meldacio thinks that either we are not interested in women or we are fucking.” Noctis groaned and threw the pillow at Gladio. It hit him in his shoulder. “They are right any way.”

Ignis leaned against the sink behind him, folding his arms on his chest.

“Well, I’m sure they will stop talking about it soon. And we cannot leave Meldacio yet, Noctis. There are still hunts we promised to do.”

Noctis huffed and fell onto the bed, smothering his face in the sheets.

“Tell him about Prompto.” Noctis’ words were barely understandable.

“Prompto?” Ignis looked at Gladio who, surprisingly, looked like a boy caught with a hand in a jar of cookies. Ignis knew that expression; it was the one he had every time he did something less than honourable like making out with Noctis in the locker room where everyone could see them or when he let Prompto pull another prank. “Gladio, what did you do?”

Noctis’ shoulders shook – probably in laughter – while Gladio’s face turned into an expression of pure innocence. Ignis didn’t trust it at all.

“You see, when Prompto came to us we were talking with two hunters. They noticed he was limping after yesterday.”

Ignis nodded. Prompto never got used to riding on a chocobo for too long and yesterday they had been using theirs to travel a lot.

“These women commented on it and Prompto told them he was riding his ‘chocobo’ for too long.” Gladio made me air quotes. “You can imagine what they thought, right?”

For the first time in a long time Ignis felt how his own cheeks were becoming red. Of course he realized how Prompto’s words would have sounded when people were sure they were in a relationship.

That, and a mental image of how nice Prompto looked when riding Ignis was always a good thing to think about.

“Yes, I can. And he went with them for ice-cream?” That part wasn’t adding up.

Noctis’s shoulders shook harder and even Gladio looked like he was going to laugh any moment.

“They said, and I quote, ‘that we weren’t taking good care of him’.” Gladio winked at Ignis. “The princess here said Prompto’s condition was all your fault.”

Ignis choked on his own saliva.

“You did that?” he asked, mortified. “Noctis!”

Noctis raised his head from the bed to look at Ignis with an impish look on his face.

“Sorry?” he tried. Ignis would believe him if only he and Glaido didn’t high-five each other.

Ignis felt a headache coming.

“Guys!” Prompto chose that moment to burst into the camper. “You won’t believe what the hunters are saying about us!” His face was all red and his eyes blown wide.

“Try us, Prom,” Noctis said from the bed, grinning at Gladio.

“They say that we’re together! And they said that Ignis wasn’t taking good care of me,” Prompto sheepishly massaged the side of his neck. “I might of told them that it wasn’t true.” It was Ignis’ turn to hide his face in his hands while Noctis and Gladio laughed out loud. “What? They surprised me!”

Ignis counted to ten and slowly released his breath. Seemed like a small change in their plans were in order.

“Caem or Lestallum?” he asked.

So his peaceful morning came to an end. At least the weather was still nice.

**Author's Note:**

> Gladio's charms don't work on any woman who heard about Melusine's hunt.  
> Neither does Ignis's smooth talking.  
> Prompto is being told that he was "lucky" and for some reason he gets a lot of phone numbers of guys "just in case you get tired of your companions".  
> The next time they run into Ardyn he comments how maybe the prince's marriage with Nox Fleuret would be happier if he married Ravus, not Luna.
> 
> In other words: chocobros got that hunt because that one Hunter thought they were gay and nothing will convince me otherwise :3
> 
> Come to talk with me on my tumblr: [firebyfire](http://firebyfire.tumblr.com). I'm always happy to talk about FFXV or to take prompts ^^ ~~commissions too! okay enough with the advertisement~~


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